Official Records

Published on Friday 30 June 2006 16:03

In Scotland, the main public bodies that you need to help in a search are based in Edinburgh. You may also benefit from visiting towns and villages connected with your family. If this is not an option, then don't lose heart, there is plenty of scope to search on the internet, and there are a number of organisations who you can pay to trace your roots.

Accessing the past

Yourself and family sources

Emigration

Surnames

The Internet

If you do manage to visit in person, bear in mind that you will be charged for searching and accessing documents, so you need to know what you are looking for before you set out. As ever in ancestor hunting, time is money, so you must ensure that you are as prepared as possible.

New Register House, 3 West Register Street, Edinburgh

They hold a number of records, including:

• Old Parish Registers (OPRs). These are records of baptisms, proclamations of banns, marriages and burials before 1854 and were created by the Church of Scotland. Be warned: they are not comprehensive.

• Birth, Marriage and Death Certificates. These replaced the OPRs in 1855 and are more complete.

• Census. A census is held every ten years and started in 1841. It records who was in every household on the night the census was taken, the person's occupation and some general background.

• Army, Navy and Air Force records.

• Monumental inscriptions.

• Miscellaneous records.

See the New Register House website for opening hours and cost.

The National Archives of Scotland, General Register House, Princes Street, Edinburgh

Also known as General Register House, these offices hold documents not found in New Register House including:

• Church Records (CH). This comprises records of births, marriages and deaths and other information from churches not represented in the OPRs, including the Roman Catholic Church, Free Church of Scotland, Episcopalian and Methodist churches.

• Testament and Wills. These comprise wills and testaments confirmed in Scotland back to the 16th Century.

• Property Records. The Register of Sasines record transactions in land and property going back in some cases to the early 17th century.

• Various Tax Records. This can include poll tax, hearth tax and assessed tax records.

• Various legal records. Including contracts and deeds and company accounts.

• Business and Other records. Records from nationalised industries such as railways (including personnel records) and coalmining (excluding personnel records).

The website is: www.nas.gov.uk.